Unkept promises behind indus-trying times
The action the industry department took remained limited to identifying 3,000 items — sanitary and common office items and furniture etc. Despite orders to give preference to city-based MSME units being issued at the highest level, little has changed in the last three years
As campaigning for the Lok Sabha seat gathers steam, promises made to the industry have been recycled for the latest lot of manifestoes; yet, industry representative still rue the non-implementation of past commitments like conversion of leasehold properties to freehold and promised procurement of up to 20% from local industrialists by the UT Chandigarh Unkept promises, shoddy implementation of schemes and complete lethargy has meant that industrialists in the City Beautiful are a disenchanted lot. Even as candidates across party lines start promising the moon to takers in the lead-up to June 1, the election date, all the industry wants is proper implementation of announced schemes and fulfilment of said promises, some of which go back decades.
For instance, in the 10 years that the Bharatiya Janata Party has sent an MP to the Parliament from Chandigarh, industrialists’ long-pending demand of converting leasehold properties to freehold has not been met. This, despite MP Kirron Kher acknowledging the seriousness of the issue for the industry. No action, however, has materialised on the ground, despite the issue being linked to getting rights to titles of plots in the industrial area.
Industrial Association of Chandigarh president Arun Mahajan says, “As far as the issue of conversion of leasehold properties to freehold is concerned, Delhi and Nagpur have done it, so why not in Chandigarh? In the past several years, we have held meeting after meeting with the officers concerned and political leaders, but received only hollow assurances.”
Another major issue that the industrialists have highlighted time and again are misuse/building violations notices issued to businesses operating from the industrial area, which the industry is seeking a withdrawal of.
The adoption of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act has also posed a few questions in Chandigarh, as has the move to increase the floor-area ratio that has been constant for four decades. The ease of doing business in the city also an area that needs addressing, industrialists note. This is despite the Union ministry of Industrial policy and promotion asking the UT administration to review its industrial policy.
2015 promise to buy local in cold storage
As promised in Industrial Policy of 2015, the UT administration has failed to implement its own procurement preference policy to purchase at least 20% items for its own departments from the city-based MSME units.
The action the industry department took remained limited to identifying 3,000 items — sanitary and common office items and furniture etc. Despite orders to give preference to city-based MSME units being issued at the highest level, little has changed in the last three years.
“Before every election, the politicians promise us that they will fulfil our demands, but even after one decade, we are in the exact same spot — running from pillar to post to get our demands fulfilled. We are fighting the battle, but officers and leaders have never bothered to solve our issues,” Mahajan says.
Four decades on, Industrial Area Phase 3 yet to see light of day
Designed by French architect and designer Le-Corbusier, the Industrial Area Phase 1 was set up in the late 1950s. Phase 2 was developed in 1975. The two are collectively spread over 1,500 acres of land, accommodating 3,000 units on plots ranging between 5 marla and 25 acres.
A Phase 3 was conceptualised around four decades ago, but has yet to see any development. Spread over 153 acres of land near Raipur Kalan, only two allotments have been made and even they have not seen any construction. There are approximately 200 plots ranging from 1 to 4 kanal. Push has come in the form of Chandigarh Master Plan (CMP-2031), which envisions the future, but little has changed on the ground. In November 2022, the UT estate office prepared a list of 30 industrial plots to be auctioned in Phase 4, but even after 15 months, there are no takers.
Business-to-consumer activities in industrial areas
During the advisory council’s August 2023 meeting, UT administrator Banwarilal Purohit had said the UT would permit business-to-consumer activities at the Industrial Area. He had added that a draft policy would be prepared within a week, but six months later, the start-up policy remains a non-starter.
Business to customer activities, though prohibited under the Chandigarh Master Plan, were first allowed in the Conversion Policy of 2005 only to be withdrawn in 2008.
Start-up policy a non-starter
The UT administration began drafting its policy in 2018, two years after Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the Startup India initiative, and directed UTs and states to frame their policies tailored to the needs of entrepreneurs in their regions. However, what followed was a tale of flip-flops and delays.
The administration came close to wrapping up the draft in October last year, assuring that it will be rolled out within a month but there has been no progress since.
The UT administration has also failed to make the best of the Centre’s push for start-up businesses, under which tax rebate on profit are provided to start-ups incorporated before March 31, 2025 for up three consecutive years during their first 10 years of operations, provided that their annual turnover does not exceed ₹100 crore.
